Kettleman City is a small town in the southwestern San Joaquin Valley. The city is next to the I-5 Interstate Highway and is the site of the largest toxic waste dump in the western United States. About 200 residents held a march and rally on Saturday, July 18th, to protest a cluster of birth defects that has recently been exposed.

Maricela Mares-Alatorre is a mother and has lived in Kettleman City for 31 years. She also helped organize the march. Mares-Alatorre said "in the past we have fought a lot of issues with our local toxic land fill, which is the largest in California. Currently they are in the process of an expansion, but what we are asking for is a moratorium on all of those permits until there is an investigation as to why there are so many children being born with cleft palate. We have had a cluster here — in a 14 month period from 2007 to 2008 five children have been born with cleft palate. We just found out this morning that there is another woman who is pregnant who will also have a child with cleft palate and we believe that until that is investigated and they know why it is happening that there shouldn't be any more permits issued."

Maura Alatorre is one of the mothers whose child was born with a cleft palate. Alatorre said she was at the rally because "it is in honor of the children that were born with these deformities and thanks to the attention that everybody is putting into this rally, there will be attention put to the problem in Kettleman City and that will help."

On Friday, July 17th, Kings County health officials said they were on a fast track to investigate the high incidence of birth defects in Kettleman City. The US Environmental Protection Agency also released a statement on Friday saying that it will be working with the county and the state to determine if the incidents are related to environmental factors. Photos and Audio Report

A pilgrimage is planned from Bellingham to Tacoma to raise awareness about the need for sane, humane way to treat immigrants. Pilgrims will begin at the Church of the Assumption in Bellingham on August 1st and walk 142 miles, ending at the notorious Northwest (Immigration) Detention Center in Tacoma. The pilgrimage is scheduled to start Aug. 1 and end Aug.15, with participants staying overnight in Catholic churches along the way. During the pilgrimage, participants will be praying for comprehensive immigration reform, hoping to bring attention to the need for a fair, just, family-centered approach to U.S. immigration laws.

Dozen of people came Sedition Books in the Montrose on Sunday July 20th to celebrate the 1st year of Sedition's operation in the Richmond Avenue location. Rebel Roots had vegan potato salad, rice and beans, and scrumptious mushroom burgers. Sedition held a dollar booksale, Straight Up Distro had their wares out and Urbane Guerilla Sound System played Reggea and Soul music while folks ate and chatted. [Full article with photos]

Navy veteran Joe Walsh (The Lone vet) from Portland Oregon, had his day in court and was found NOT GUILTY in a stunning peace movement victory over a foreign political influence.

Without Gordon Sturrock's video of the events there would have been almost no way to have won this case without having to do some really painstaking Q&A lasting several hours involving lots and lots of drawings with x'es and dotted lines and biases. The video provided an impartial camera eye's view of events that would have been very difficult to establish any other way. It's doubtful there would have been the same outcome without it. The video showed Joe walking across the driveway once, twice, being led away in cuffs- and the whole time there is another man in a black suit walking about in the restricted area with complete impunity. As it turns out, he's important.

Youngbloods, Elders and Friends: Cynthia McKinney, Charles Barron and 200 other Americans broke the Israeli blockade of Gaza today when the first American "'Viva Palestina" convoy entered Gaza with 50 trucks and cars filled with relief supplies for the 1.5 million Palestinians who have been blockaded and bombarded by Israel for over two years. Several weeks ago McKinney and 20 other activists were illegally seized in international waters and held in an Israeli prison when they tried to bring relief supplies to Gaza by boat. Upon her release from prison Cynthia joined Charles Barron and the other Viva Palestina activists who were being refused entry into Gaza by Egyptian authorities.

Hello Low Power Radio Fans!

The Prometheus Radio Project is collaborating with dozens of economic, social, and media justice groups to take action to all summer long to pass the Local Community Radio Act (HR 1147/S592). Here is an overview of how you can take action:

1) Join people from across the country on MONDAY JULY 20, 2009 to tell Congress to open up the airwaves by passing the Local Community Radio Act.

Marylanders today announced launch of a citizens' organization to stop the proposed experimental French, double-sized nuclear reactor in order to save the dead and dying Chesapeake Bay.

The last few weeks have been unbelievable! I want to share some of my experiences so that anyone who hesitates taking time off their job might think again, and renounce being consumer slaves of corporate capital, in favor of radical adventure and creative insurrection against the global government of militant madness.

Nearly a month ago I took time off work to partake in the most amazing Cascadia Summer, something like a summer vacation, even with an overnight in Douglas County Jail.

A Brief History of Ashland, Oregon’s Green Welcome and Sustainability Center

July 2050:

Looking back over forty years, things have certainly changed. In 2009, our country experienced an extreme shift in thinking as a result of a near financial meltdown and indications of impending climatic and resource consequences. During that time period people began to evaluate their individual and group actions and values and came to understand that they must begin putting back into the environment more than was being taken out.

It was difficult to return to conservative practices after people had grown accustomed to using the plentiful natural resources of the planet in frivolous ways. When the cost of cheap fossil fuels accelerated based on decreasing supply and increasing demand,other solutions became,at first,necessary, and eventually mainstream - even popular.

Starbucks and McDonalds billboards in the Ballard neighborhood were corrected, to provide the public with more accurate nutritional information.

There are lots of Portland Benefits In the Works!

All day THIS SUNDAY, Proper Eats will be donating 10% of all their sales from the Cafe and store to the forest defenders. Please support businesses that support local activists! And eat awesome vegan food!
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This next Wednesday will be the regular open Portland Rising Tide meeting at the Red & Black Cafe. We'll be presenting Western Oregon Plan Revision and Elliot State Forest management, and showcasing the Free State, Cascadia Summer, and Home Depot actions.

Second part will be a benefit show with a few local radical favorites. Please come and donate what you can!
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Food Fight Grocery
1217 SE Stark -- Ongoing Benefit
Food Fight has a donation bucket set up for forest defenders. So when you're buying your veggie dogs and Schreese, please drop yr change in the bucket.
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You can always donate online by visiting forestdefensenow.org

On July 5th health care reform advocates counter protested a right wing "tea party" demonstration at a busy intersection in San Jose, California. The Raging Grannies, in colorful costumes and carrying "Patients Not Profits" parasols, joined members of other advocates of a single payer health care system. Angry "tea party" demonstrators, who said they are against any health care reform whatsoever, carried signs with their slogan Taxed Enough Already. Their t-shirts, buttons and placards proclaimed their anti-gay, pro-gun and pro free market health care position. Read More | Related: http://dc.indymedia.org/feature/display/131836/index.php

"There is no more apt theme for this conference at this fear-driven moment in political history."

With those words, journalist and scholar Charles E. Cobb Jr. kicked off his keynote address Friday to the national Free Minds Free People Conference in Houston, which took place at the city's convention center from June 25 to 28. The gathering drew a diverse crowd of about 400 U.S. teachers, high school and college students, researchers, parents, and community-based activists/educators build a movement developing and promoting education for liberation by engaging youth of color and low-income youth in the fight for social justice.

The second Free Minds conference, with the first taking place in Chicago in 2007, this year's event was organized by Houston's S.H.A.P.E. Community Center, The Brotherhood/Sister Sol of New York, Chicago Freedom School and the Education for Liberation Network. [Read Full Article]

Free Minds Free People Conference Highlights from the Houston Indymedia Radio Show

SOUTH EL MONTE — Residents of area communities and supporters of the Whittier Narrows Natural Area strongly criticized and rejected a controversial $30 million regional watershed visitor center proposed for the county Natural Area during a public meeting held Wednesday at South El Monte High School to discuss the project and its recently released draft environmental impact report. No member of the community spoke in favor of the proposal during the meeting.

The project, the San Gabriel River Discovery Center, would dramatically increase the human footprint within the only wildlife sanctuary on the San Gabriel River, located between the Montebello and Puente Hills. It would replace the existing 2,000-square-foot nature center with a building nearly 10 times bigger, and it would destroy important wildlife habitat within a county Significant Ecological Area to build a 150-car parking lot and other manmade features. Full Story: No community support for $30M Discovery Center at EIR meeting by Jim Odling

On Monday June 29th, the City of Grand Junction tried to pass two emergency ordinances outlawing "soliciting," also known as flying a sign or spanging. What stopped the city from moving forward with these laws was a strong, large, and loud group of homeless people and younger radicals.

No one came to support the law, and over a hundred people came to oppose it. Solidarity Not Charity (our FNB out here in GJ) provided food and water serving on the city halls lawn. Live tunes were provided by, local band Fast Food Kings, and out-of-towners Chicken Little, who were hell a cool about relocating from the infoshop to city hall to play. Read more>>

RELATED: CU Tent Community! (Urbana-Champaign)

On Sunday, June 28th two entities—Activists Against Racism Movement and Down In the Dirt Productions—pooled their ideas, time, and resources to create a venue to unite local community members with one another and with grassroots organizations, local political candidates, and small businesses in the Greater Rochester area. From progressive Democrats to radical students, performance artists to published authors, STD educators to crime preventers, the wealth of collective expertise shared at the Main St. Armory was rich indeed.

An indymedia correspondent was able to catch up with some of the organizers and participants of the day's event to discuss the importance of building strong communities.

On Friday, June 26, the Chicago lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police held a reunion party to commemorate police veterans from the 1968 Democratic National Convention — the police who beat and harrassed Convention protesters, who attacked Puerto Rican activists in a 1966 uprising, and who assassinated two Black Panther organizers in an overnight raid.

In the wake of these shameful actions, and ongoing present-day police brutality and malfeasance by Chicago police, community activists and members of Chicago Copwatch assembled to rally at Chicago's Union Park. They then marched three blocks away to the Fraternal Order of Police lodge where the reunion was held.

The marchers were hemmed in just down the street from the lodge, but that didn't stop activists from starting a second rally, complete with protest picket and with speeches. Right after one speech ended, the rally got a major shot in the arm. Chicago Critical Mass, the once-a-month roving bicycle-theatrical-protest, included the Chicago Copwatch protest in their route, which meant that for nearly 20 minutes, thousands of bicyclists eluded the police blockade and joined in witness to the protest. Watch Video

Additional Coverage: Chicago 68 Demonstration Getting More attention | Links to Corporate Media Coverage of the Chicago Copwatch '68 Reunion Protest

There are a lot of activists swooping into PDX for the Let Live weekend (letlivefoundation.org/conference) and the surge against animal abuse begins Friday the 26th with a rally at Ungar furs, SW 12th & Yamhill (2 blocks west of the library). If you want help animals then come "Raise your fist and your voice, (cause) fox & mink have no choice!" Ungar has been slaughtering innocent animals for 103 years and is the last furrier in downtown Portland. Although the Let Live Conference ends on Sunday night a lot of animal advocates are sticking around for another rally on Monday at Ungar.

Yesterday, June 27th, white supremacists attempted to distribute hate literature in downtown Houston. Antifascists mobilized to confront the gathering and sent a clear message to the fascists - not in our city! White supremacists intended to hold a memorial for a dead nazi creepball David Lane. Dave was a member of an armed white supremacist group called "the Order," and kicked the bucket in federal prison in 2007 where he was serving time for the murder of Jewish radio host Allen Berg.

When the so-called "Aryan Front Line Skinheads" declared their intention to distribute copies of Dave's racist rants in the Houston area, antifascists immediately went on the alert. The boneheads tried to be clever by waiting until 11pm the night before to post an actual location, but antifa were already standing by. The call went out, and in the morning our scouts were on location at the downtown federal building where the fascist goons planned to gather. Antifascists from around the city began gathering in a downtown park at 10 am. By eleven there were over 40 of us, and still no sign of the nazis. [Read Full Article with Photos | Antiracistaction.net]

Related: Rose City Antifa: Statement on Anti-Semites and their Collaborators

Three anti-torture activists refuse to pay First Amendment Tax after being arrested in front of the White House, held until Monday, receive trial date. Meanwhile those responsible for systematic torture walk free.